types of patients

Five years ago, patients were just starting to make use of apps and smartphones to better inform themselves about symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment at home and on-the-fly in clinics, hospitals, or wherever symptoms started to occur.

Ten years ago, patients were first starting to use the Internet en-masse to research their conditions, possible treatments, and even perused physician ratings while shopping around for a doctor.

Fifteen years ago, patients had far less access to medical information – Medical professionals were seen as the primary and sometimes sole source of insight for patients. And treatment for a number of common life-threatening ailments was significantly less advanced.

Here’s a look at the types of patients medical professionals encounter, contrasted with how they’ve changed since the 1990s: [click to continue…]